Like many golfers, James Alonzo Hines attempted to make a hole-in-one. The problem is, the hole he was trying to make wasn't on the course, it was on another golfer's head.
Hines, 61, is accused of driving his golf cart into a group of men having a bachelor golfing party and then bashing one with a golf club and proceeding to fight -- all while telling them, "You need to respect your elders," Newser reported.
"It was some guy who must have been having a bad day," Murdock Hampe, 27, told Jacksonville.com. He suffered a badly swollen leg when hit by the golf cart and a long knot when a golf club was broken over his head.
Hampe was one of six buddies golfing on the course to celebrate the May 5 wedding of friend Donald Salsbery. Some of them first-timers who had already had a few cocktails at a nearby bar, however Hampe stressed to Jacksonville.com that nobody in his party was drunk.
Hines' group, who included another man and two women, were behind the bachelor party and got teed off at how the younger golfers were holding up their game, according to witness Justin Ravel, who told Jacksonville.com that he saw the initial confrontation from the 18th tee.
At first, it was one of the women in Hines' party who griped about the young'uns. "She said they weren't playing the game right and that clearly ticked them [Hines' party] off," Ravel said.
Hampe told Jacksonville.com that the incident began when Hines began hitting balls at them from about 200 yards away. One of the partygoers heaved the ball back at Hines, who, according to police, hopped in his cart and headed for the group. Hampe said he jumped out of his cart just before Hines ran over his leg and slammed into Michael Hankin, 25, pinning him against another cart.
"He ran right over my buddy and caught me, too," Hampe said. "He went full bore." Hampe said he was then struck by the club and saw Hines grab for another.
Witnesses say they saw Hines and the other male in his party holding clubs over their heads while their female partners also brandished clubs.
Some of the members in the bachelor party jumped on Hines and they tumbled into a sand trap as police arrived.
It wasn't the bachelor party Salsbery envisioned. "We all just went there thinking it was going to be a cool, chilled day and right at the end it got crazy," said Salsbery, 26.
Hines, who a witness said was bloodied in the brawl, was charged with aggravated battery with a deadly weapon, according to the arrest report. He was was jailed and later released, but no other people were arrested.
Grandfather golf-related attacks are unusual, but apparently not uncommon in Florida. Back in March, Ronald E. Richardson and Donald E. Nieto, both 71, were arrested and charged with child abuse after they were accused of striking a teenager with metal golf ball retrievers, according to NWFDailyNews.com.